1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally pertains to the field of building construction and building remodeling, and more particularly to the field of roofing for residential and commercial buildings.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The use of Spanish or Mission tile as a roofing material is very common in many geographical areas. The Spanish or Mission tile is made of ceramic material and has certain properties such as shedding water, weather resistance, strength and durability which are very desirable. The tiles being arcuate in cross section are laid side by side along the outer edge of the roof forming a first course of tiles, and a second course of tiles is laid with the lower ends of the second course overlapping the upper ends of the first course. The color, shape, and pattern of the tiles as laid creates a unique asthetic quality which is desireable to be maintained. However, the Spanish or Mission tile is very heavy and very brittle. The ordinary tile weighs approximately nine pounds per square foot and requires an especially strong roof to support the weight of the tile. In addition, because of the extreme brittleness of the ceramic tile, waste in manufacturing runs as high as twenty percent and loss due to breakage in shipment and installation has been found to run approximately twelve percent. Thus the cost to install ceramic tile, including shipping, labor, waste, and loss is high.
In order to provide an economical imitation roofing yet retaining the asthetic appearance of Spanish tile, BAKER, U.S. Pat. No. 3,485,002 invented an imitation Spanish tile produced from thin sheets of normally hard or stiff or rigid thermoplastic or thermosetting plastic material. BAKER provided a substantially water proof and weather resistant imitation roofing material primarily for decorative purposes; but BAKER did not intend nor provide a product intended for ordinary roofing, nor is it suitable product for ordinary roofing because it lacks sufficient strength. WIENAND, U.S. Pat. No. 3,461,628 taught a square plate-shaped roof shingle made of thermoplastic material such as polyvinyl chloride, poly vinylidene chloride, polyurethanes, polyethylene, poly propolene, etc. However, WIENAND emphasizes shingle interlocking means which is not adaptable to the arcuate shape of Spanish tile. MEDOW, U.S. Pat. No. 3,621,625 teaches a simulated brick siding made of synthetic resinous materials impregnated with glass fibers for strength and rigidity. MEDOW primarily teaches how to interlock sheets so that half-bricks at the edge of the sheet mate to appear as whole bricks. The interlocking means taught by MEDOW is not appropriate for roofing materials, since ther interlocking means of MEDOW could permit rain water to be blown between sheets if installed on a roof. In addition, MEDOW does not teach how to cap or otherwise cover a roof ridge or apex.